Number of the day
by Logans4ever
Summary: Surprises just kept on coming and when the shock of one had finally just started to wear off, the next was waiting to knock her back down. A fluffy Clois one-shot


**Warning: There are spoilers for S8! **

**A/N: **With all these fun new cloisy spoilers for Instinct, I thought I'd come up with my own fluffy version of how things might play out.

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**Number of the day**

Today had been one of _those_ days. Not bad, per say, but definitely, without a doubt, unexpected.

Lois suppressed a snort, _unexpected_ seemed to be the word of the day- brought to her by the letter O and the number four. At her internal dialogue, a frown covered her face. She really needed to stop frequenting that coffee shop right by the pre-school- it was starting to have a disturbing effect on her thoughts. Like just this morning she had found herself thinking that the idea of having children was actually kinda nice- that had been surprise number one of the day.

Needless to say, she had gotten the hell out of kiddie territory as fast as she could. Lois gave a small shudder at her momentary lapse of judgement.

Lois Lane and kids just did not mesh, so where the hell had that thought come from? It was probably all the pheromones or something, she reasoned, because hadn't she read somewhere about the effect of that type of thing? So, with sound logic in her corner, Lois had put it behind her.

From there, the surprises just kept on coming and when the shock of one had _finally_ just started to wear off, the next was waiting to knock her back down.

She was finally starting to calm down, with the aide of her pep talk and three more cups of coffee- from a café far far away from her usual place, for obvious reasons, when the new editor in chief had barked out her name in his gruff voice. Eager to see what hot new headline she would soon be writing up, Lois had rushed to his office, pencil gripped excitedly in hand.

Her excitement was short lived- as well as the pencil that snapped- at the unceremonious announcement that not only would she be getting a raise on Monday, but with it, a partner and she was expected to train him and show him the ropes. _I'll show him the ropes alright, the ones I tie around his neck. _

Before she could so much as open her mouth, she had been told bluntly that the _Planet_ was not a democracy and if she had a problem with it, then maybe the _Inquisitor_ would better suit her needs.

It was apparent that someone had already gotten to the older man and informed him of her penchant for arguing. When she found out who had dared to do such a thing, she was going to make sure they truly understood that Lois Lane was not to be double crossed.

Filled with impotent fury, she had stormed out in a huff, not bothering to ask just what moron she had been shackled with. Sadly, her dramatic exit was not even close to grand- because life was just not that kind. No, instead she ended up with her mouth stuck in a perfect 'o' as the elevator doors slid open.

She had _not_ been prepared for the sight that met her eyes. Really she should have been, because why wouldn't she have expected to see Clark Kent, modest farmboy, tangled with a half naked brunnette that seemed intent on stripping him down bare right there in the elevator?

His eyes had been dazed as he had looked around at the small ding, belatedly noticing that there was now a very shocked audience of one watching the proceedings with nothing short of heart failure. Apparently, _little miss sex in public places _didn't seem to care about being watched, because those little hands were still desperately grappling with his belt.

If suddenly there was a small ache deep in Lois' chest, it was just the four cups of coffee she had gulped down in less than an hour, nothing more- and most definitely not the torrid little scene she had been unfortunate enough to stumble across.

Struggling away from a scantily clad brunnette, Clark had sent her his trademark 'aw, shucks' look.

_Yeah, like that's going to work after this. _

Not saying a word, she sent the pair a cocky wink and strode for the stairs, not caring that Clark was still in a battle to maintain his virtue.

She had been thinking about how she never had time to exercise anymore, so really, it was a good thing that she would be walking down all those flights of stairs- even if she was wearing the heels that pinched her toes. But dammit, they made her legs look as though they went on for miles.

"Lois!"

She turned and watched as he jogged down the stairs, tucking in his shirt along the way. At the rip on one side, she raised an eyebrow.

At least he had the decency to blush. "That wasn't what it looked like."

She seriously doubted that, but it wasn't her business. "Hey, no need to explain to me. Now that Lana's gone, you're free to do what you want- and if that happens to include elevator sex with random chicks, then whatever."

"N-no, it wasn't like that."

Pushing aside the tiny flare of satisfaction at his need to explain to her, Lois frowned up at him. "Well, why not? You're young, it's not a crime to get a little crazy. I think it's a good thing you're finally getting out there, seeing what else the world has to offer. I mean, I always thought it was weird that a guy your age would be so single mindedly devoted to one woman for so long."

At the little speech, Clark seemed at a loss for words before finally clearing his throat and awkwardly shrugging. "Yeah, well…"

"So, besides exploring the many uses of an elevator, what're you doing here?"

She noticed with interest how he seemed to look anywhere but at her, gulping a little as he tried- and failed- to act casual. "A couple reasons actually…uh, one thing was I thought you might want to know that Shelby decided to come back to the farm."

"Yeah, thanks." Lois hid a frown. To be honest, she hadn't even known that the golden retriever had left the farm, so learning that he had returned was more than a bit anti-climactic.

"Apparently Ben Hubbard got sick of him hanging around his Border Collie, Sally, and decided to send him home."

She couldn't repress a smile at that. Her little flee bag had found love and decided to watch his lady love from afar. If the stories she had heard of Clark Kent's early years were anything to go by, the dog really was like his master.

"You should move back to the farm."

Lois blinked. Then blinked again for good measure. Well there was surprise number three.

Not sure she had heard him correctly, she spoke slowly, trying to wrap her mind around the unexpected question. "You want me to move onto the farm- to live with you, where you used to live with your girlfriend. Me and you…living together, just us?"

"And Shelby." Clark supplied helpfully, suddenly looking like a five year old waiting eagerly for to be given a candy bar. Lois refused to analyze why this seemed to mean so much to him. "You're old room is available and I just thought…"

The thought of her old room brought a smile to her face. It had been one of the best places she had ever lived- whether it was because of the broken in mattress that felt like a fluffy cloud or knowing that because she was enjoying it meant Clark _wasn't_, still wasn't clear.

At the idea of sleeping arrangements, the smile fled her face. Her old room was his room- and possibly the one he had shacked up in with his old girlfriend. Where would he sleep? She knew he hated staying in his parents bedroom, the feeling of intruding in their personal domain still lingered, so what exactly did he have in mind?

Flashes of him and the nameless brunette filled her mind, blurring until it became _her_ that he was tangled passionately with.

"Not for sex or anything!" Clark suddenly announced.

His outburst made her chuckle at how in tune they were. It was funny how they could read each other so well sometimes.

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't think so." Lois said, the look in his eyes making her waver slightly. Staying firm and avoiding his soulful puppy dog eyes, she continued. "When I do move- it's going to be to Metropolis."

"Yeah, it was just a thought." Clark nodded, his shoulders slumping a bit.

The sight was almost enough to make her cave and agree, but there were reasons why it was a bad idea. Valid reasons- and no matter how sad he looked, that didn't change them.

"I'll see you later, Lois."

Watching him turn to walk away, her reporter's instinct kicked in and reminded her of his earlier words. "Hey Clark?"

Looking at her over his shoulder, he raised a brow in question.

"You said there were a couple of reasons why you came, what are the others?" She asked, genuinely curious.

A flash of amusement flicked across his face, momentarily replacing the disappointment he had been trying to hide. "Oh, nothing important."

Before she could question him further, he had jogged up the stairs, leaving her puzzling after the mischievous grin he had been sporting.

The rest of the day had, thankfully, gone by without any more unexpected moments- something she was deeply grateful for because four happened to be more than enough.

By the time she got to her apartment, all she wanted to do was soak in a warm bubble bath and wash away the insanity of her day.

Opening the door, her jaw fell at the mountains of boxes that had taken over every spot available. She skirted the tower of boxes stacked precariously by the door and began to search for the source of the cardboard invasion. "Chloe! What the hell is going on?"

From behind what could only be termed a fort, popped out a head. Instead of the blonde tresses she expected, curly brown met her eyes. Climbing out from his makeshift house, Jimmy gave her a smile. "Hey Lois. What's up?"

Lois gave him an incredulous look. Was he kidding her? He turned her apartment into a storage unit and all he had to say is _what's up_? "Why don't you tell me, since I've clearly missed something here."

With a beaming smile, he informed her happily. "Didn't Chloe tell you? She asked me to move in with her!"

Head starting to pound, Lois looked around the small apartment, taking in all the boxes that overwhelmed the small room. Then she looked at the oblivious man in front of her, still chattering on excitedly about how happy he was that he and Chloe were going to be living together.

_And me!_ Lois felt like screaming. Did they both conveniently forget that she lived here too? That this was _her_ apartment in the first place?

Rubbing her temples, Lois gave Jimmy a long look as he continued to go on in detail about just how great everything was. Tuning him out completely she grabbed an empty box and handed it to the man in front of her. "Fill it up."

Two and a half hours later, Lois found herself facing impossibly bright blue eyes as she announced. "This is temporary. A couple weeks tops."

Loud barks sounded as the last member of the welcome committee arrived, jumping up in glee that his favorite person had returned. Lois sneezed as she patted the dog, both making their way to the house.

Before going inside, Lois looked back at the man already loaded with full boxes and called out. "Unload everything, would ya?"

Laughing at his grumbles of protest, Lois led Shelby into the house.

It was as though she had never left. The place still held the feeling of comfort she had always associated with it. Taking a deep breath, she allowed the feeling of peace to spread though her as she plopped down on the comfortable couch. She was home- and from the bowl of freshly made popcorn conveniently sitting by her favorite type of soda on the coffee table- she was more than welcome back.

Grabbing a handful of popcorn, Lois wielded the remote expertly as she flipped through the channels, all the while listening to Clark complain loudly about the lack of help he was getting.

Two bags of popcorn later, the tell tale sign of her trunk being slammed closed could be heard, followed by Clark bounding into the house.

Falling into a heap on the couch by her side, Clark looked at the screen and then back at her, a bemused smile on his face. "What are you watching?"

Ignoring his question, Lois slapped his hand away from her bowl before popping a few pieces into her mouth, eyes never leaving the screen.

_"…brought to you by the number five!"_

Thinking about her day, Lois couldn't stop the small nod of agreement with the furry little muppet. "Yup, that sounds about right."

_Fin._


End file.
